1. ENSINGER provides technical guidelines for machining various plastic materials. 2. Key guidelines include using carbide-tipped tools for reinforced plastics, ensuring proper tool sharpening, and allowing for heat dissipation during machining. 3. Specific tips are provided for milling, drilling, sawing, and threading to optimize surface finish and prevent cracking or burring. Stress relief of materials may also be required before or during machining.

1. ENSINGER essentials.
Technical know-how for plastic applications.
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Sawing
* Reinforcing materials/fillers: glass fibre, glass
20 20 20 15 15 15 15 15 20 15 15 15 15 5 5 5 15
α - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
30 30 30 30 30 30 30 30 30 30 30 30 30 10 10 10 30
t
2 2 0 5 5 5 5 0 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 10
γ - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
5 5 5 8 8 8 8 5 8 4 4 5 5 3 3 3 15
α
500 500 500 800 800 800 200
γ V 500 500 - 300 300 300 300 300 300 500 500 - - - - - -
800 800 800 900 900 900 300
α Clearance angle (°)
γ Rake angle (°)
3 3 2 3 3 3 3 2 2 2 2 3 3 10 10 10 3
V
t
Cutting speed
Pitch
m/min
mm
t - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
8 8 5 8 8 8 8 8 5 5 5 5 5 14 14 14 5
Drilling 5 5 5 5 8 8 8 8 10 3 3 5 5 5 5 5
α - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 6
15 15 10 10 10 10 10 12 16 10 10 10 10 10 10 10
10 10 15 10 10 10 10 10 5 10 10 10 10 5 5 5 5
ϕ γ - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
20 20 30 20 20 20 20 30 20 20 20 30 30 10 10 10 10
γ
90
α
ϕ 90 90 90 90 90 90 90 90 130 90 90 90 90 120 120 - 120
120
α Clearance angle (°) 50 50 50 50 50 50 50 50 150 20 20 50 50 80 80 80 80
γ Rake angle (°) V - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
ϕ Point angle (°) 150 150 200 100 100 100 100 200 200 80 80 200 200 100 100 100 100
V Cutting speed m/min
S Feed mm/rev
0,1 0,1 0,1 0,2 0,2 0,2 0,2 0,2 0,1 0,1 0,1 0,1 0,1 0,02 0,02 0,05 0,1
The twist angle β of the drill bit S - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
should be approx. 12° to 16° 0,3 0,3 0,3 0,3 0,3 0,3 0,3 0,3 0,3 0,3 0,3 0,3 0,3 0,1 0,1 0,15 0,3
Milling 10 10 5 5 10 10 10 5 5 2 2 5 5 2 2 2 15
α - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
α 20 20 15 15 20 20 20 10 15 10 10 15 15 5 5 5 30
γ 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 0 5 1 1 6 6 0 0 0 6
α Clearance angle (°) γ - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
γ Rake angle (°) 15 15 15 15 15 15 15 10 15 5 5 10 10 5 5 5 10
χ Side angle (°)
V Cutting speed m/min
250 250 250 300 250 250 250 250 250 90 90 90 80
The feed can be up to V - - - 300 300 300 300 - - - - - - - - - -
0.5 mm / tooth 500 500 500 500 500 500 500 500 500 100 100 100 100
Turning 6 6 6 5 5 5 5 5 6 6 2 2 2 6
α - - - - - - - - 10 6 6 - - - - - -
10 10 8 10 10 10 10 15 8 8 5 5 5 8
0 0 0 0 6 6 6 25 5 0 0 0 0 0 2
χ α
γ - - - - - - - - - 0 0 - - - - - -
α 5 5 5 5 8 8 8 30 8 5 5 5 5 5 8
γ
45 45 45 45 45 45 45 45 45 45 45 7 7 7 45
χ - - - - - - - 15 10 - - - - - - - -
α Clearance angle (°) 60 60 60 60 60 60 60 60 60 60 60 10 10 10 60
γ Rake angle (°)
χ Side angle (°)
V Cutting speed m/min 250 250 300 300 200 150 350 350 250 250 100 100 100 150
S Feed mm/rev V - - - - 300 300 300 - - - - - - - - - -
500 500 600 400 500 500 400 400 500 500 120 120 120 200
0,1 0,1 0,1 0,2 0,1 0,1 0,1 0,2 0,1 0,1 0,1 0,1 0,1 0,05 0,05 0,05 0,1
The nose radius r must be at least
0.5 mm
S - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
05 05 0,4 0,4 0,5 0,5 0,5 0,5 0,3 0,3 0,3 0,5 0,5 0,08 0,08 0,25 0,5
Special Heat before sawing:
from 60 mm diameter TECAPEEK GF/PVX, TECATRON
Heat before drilling in the centre:
from 60 mm diameter TECAPEEK GF/PVX, TECATRON GF/PVX
measures from 80 mm diameter TECAMID 66 GF, TECADUR PET/PBT from 80 mm diameter TECAMID 66 MH, 66 GF, TECADUR PET/PBT
from 100 mm diameter TECAMID 6 GF, 66, 66 MH from 100 mm diameter TECAMID 6 GF, 66, TECAM 6 Mo, TECANYL GF
Caution when using coolants:
Preheat material to
susceptible to
120 °C Use carbide-tipped tools
stress cracking
14

3. | General information* 2. Milling
Non-reinforced thermoplastic polymers can be machined For plane surfaces, end-milling is more economical than peri-
using high speed tools. For reinforced materials, carbide- pheral milling. For circumferential and profile milling the tools
tipped tools are necessary. should not have more than two cutting edges so that vibrati-
ons caused by the cutters can be kept low and the gaps bet-
In all cases, only correctly sharpened tools should be used. ween the chips is sufficiently large.
Due to the poor thermal conductivity of plastics, good heat Optimum cutting performance and surface finish are obtai-
flow must be ensured. The best form of cooling is heat ned with single-cutter tools.
dissipation via the chips.
3. Drilling
| Dimensional stability Twist drills can generally be used; these should have an
Dimensionally accurate parts presuppose the use of angle of twist of 12° to 16° and very smooth spiral grooves
stress relieved semi-finished products. Heat from machi- for good removal of cuttings.
ning will otherwise unavoidably result in the release of Larger diameters should be pre-drilled or should be produced
machining stresses and distortion of the part. If large using hollow drills or by cutting out. Particular attention
material volumes are to be machined, intermediate tem- should be paid to using properly sharpened drills when drilling
pering may be necessary after rough machining to relieve into solid material, as otherwise the resulting compression
the resulting thermal stresses. Specific temperatures and stresses can increase to the extent that the material splits.
times to be used according to material can be obtained
from us upon request. Reinforced plastics have higher residual processing stresses
and a lower impact resistance than non-reinforced plastics
Materials with high moisture absorption (e.g. polyamides) and are therefore particularly susceptible to cracking. Where
may have to be conditioned before processing. possible, they should be heated to around 120 °C before dril-
ling (heating time approx. 1 hour per 10 mm cross-section).
Plastics require higher production tolerances than metals. This method is also recommended for polyamide 66 and
Furthermore, the very much higher thermal expansion polyester.
needs to be taken into consideration.
4. Sawing
| Machining methods Unnecessary heat generation caused by friction must be
1. Turning avoided, as generally thick-walled parts are cut with relatively
Guide values for tool geometry are given in the table. For thin tools during sawing. Well-sharpened and strongly offset
surfaces with particularly high quality requirements, the saw blades are therefore recommended.
cutting edge must be designed as a broad smoothing tool
as shown in Figure 1. 5. Thread cutting
Threads are best cut using thread chasers; burring can be
For cutting off, the lathe tool should be ground as shown avoided by using twin-toothed chasers.
in Figure 4 to prevent the formation of burrs.
Die cutters are not recommended as re-cutting can be
For thin-walled and particularly flexible workpieces, on the expected during removal of the cutter.
other hand, it is better to work with tools that are ground
to a knife-like cutting geometry (Figures 2 and 3). A machining allowance (dependent on material and diameter;
guide value: 0.1 mm) must frequently be taken into account
when using tap drills.
6. Safety precautions
Failure to observe the machining guideli-
nes can result in localised overheating
which can lead to material degradation.
Decomposition products which may be
released, e.g. from PTFE fillers, should
1 Secondary cutter Grinding prevents burr be removed using extraction facilities.
2 Lathe tool Figure 1 formation Figure 4
In this respect, tobacco products should
be kept out of the production area due
Stress produced with a blunt drill to the risk of poisoning.
Cutting off flexible pla-
stics Figure 2 Figure 5
*Our application engineering advice, provided
both written and orally, is intended to help you in
Stress produced with a sharp drill
your work. It must be regarded as a recommen-
dation without obligation, also with respect to
possible third-party property rights. We can assu-
me no liability for any possible damage which ari-
ses during processing.
Parting off flexible pla- Figure 3
stics Figure 6
15

4. Annealing specifications
When processing plastic semi-finished goods using
machining processes it is recommended under certain
circumstances, an annealing process is carried out after
rough machining, in order to achieve the best dimensio-
nal stability and resistance.
Annealing is a temperature treatment, which serves the The parameters given in the following annealing specifi-
following purposes: cation are approximate values and apply up to a wall
thickness of 50 mm. For larger wall thicknesses please
I Increase the crystallinity to improve the contact our technical marketing department.
strength and chemical resistance.
I Reduces inner tension, which can arise by
extrusion or machining.
I Increases the dimensional stability over a broad
range of temperatures.
Material DIN specification Heating-up phase Maintaining phase ** Cooling down phase
VESPEL® PI 2 h to 160 °C 1h at 20 °C/h to 40 °C
2 h to 300 °C per cm wall thickness
SINTIMID PI 2 h to 160 °C 2 h at 160 °C at 20 °C/h to 40 °C
6 h to 280 °C 10 h at 280 °C
TECAPEEK PEEK 3 h to 120 °C 1,5 h at 20 °C/h to 40 °C
4 h to 220 °C per cm wall thickness
TECATRON PPS 3 h to 120 °C 1,5 h at 20 °C/h to 40 °C
4 h to 220 °C per cm wall thickness
TECASON E PES 3 h to 100 °C 1h at 20 °C/h to 40 °C
4 h to 200 °C per cm wall thickness
TECASON P PPSU 3 h to 100 °C 1h at 20 °C/h to 40 °C
4 h to 200 °C per cm wall thickness
TECASON S PSU 3 h to 100 °C 1h at 20 °C/h to 40 °C
3 h to 165 °C per cm wall thickness
TECAFLON PVDF PVDF 3 h to 90 °C 1h at 20 °C/h to 40 °C
3 h to 150 °C per cm wall thickness
TECANAT PC 3 h to 80 °C 1h at 20 °C/h to 40 °C
3 h to 130 °C per cm wall thickness
TECADUR PET PET 3 h to 100 °C 1h at 20 °C/h to 40 °C
4 h to 180 °C per cm wall thickness
TECADUR PBT GF 30 PBT 3 h to 100 °C 1h at 20 °C/h to 40 °C
4 h to 180 °C per cm wall thickness
TECAMID 6 PA 6 3 h to 90 °C 1h at 20 °C/h to 40 °C
3 h to 160 °C per cm wall thickness
TECAMID 66 PA 66 3 h to 100 °C 1h at 20 °C/h to 40 °C
4 h to 180 °C per cm wall thickness
TECAFORM AH POM-C 3 h to 90 °C 1h at 20 °C/h to 40 °C
3 h to 155 °C per cm wall thickness
TECAFORM AD POM-H 3 h to 90 °C 1h at 20 °C/h to 40 °C
3 h to 160 °C per cm wall thickness
** at maximum temperature, unless otherwise specified.
16

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